1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to disposable absorbent articles which are adapted to contain body exudates. More particularly, the present invention relates disposable absorbent articles which have a garment-like appearance.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional disposable absorbent articles, such as disposable diapers, have typically included a bodyside liner, an outer cover, and an absorbent core disposed between the outer cover and the bodyside liner. Typically, the outer covers of such conventional absorbent articles have been constructed from a generally rectangular sheet of material which has had portions of its side margins removed. Thus, the end margins of the sheet of material provide the waist opening region of the absorbent article while the partially removed side margins provide the leg opening regions of the absorbent article. The outer covers of such absorbent articles have also been constructed with various types of elasticized portions at the waist and leg opening regions. Such elasticized portions have been used to reduce the leakage of body exudates from the absorbent article. The elasticized portions of the outer cover have also been used to improve the appearance and fit of the absorbent article about the wearer. For example, conventional disposable absorbent articles have generally utilized outer covers which have elastic strands positioned at the leg and waist opening regions to gather the outer cover and absorbent article to hold it against the body of the wearer.
However, conventional disposable absorbent articles which include outer covers as described above have exhibited several shortcomings. For example, it has been difficult to conform conventional absorbent articles and, in particular, the absorbent cores of such articles to the body of the wearer. Typically, the absorbent core on such conventional absorbent articles has been bonded to or immobilized between the outer cover and the bodyside liner.
Consequently, it has been difficult to control the shape of the absorbent article to maintain an aesthetically pleasing appearance during use. In an attempt to better gather the absorbent core and the absorbent article, the waist and leg opening regions of conventional absorbent articles have included elastics which apply high contracting or gathering forces on the absorbent article. However, such high forces have undesirably resulted in irritation and red marking of the skin of the wearer. The high forces have also resulted in an undesirable level of bunching of the absorbent article especially in the crotch region.
To obtain a better fit and appearance about different sized wearers, it also has been required to provide conventional disposable absorbent articles in many different sizes. For example, it has been required to provide conventional disposable diapers in as many as 3-8 different sizes to accommodate different sized infants. As a result, the costs of manufacturing and marketing such articles has been undesirably high.
Despite the attempts to develop more aesthetically pleasing and improved disposable absorbent articles, there remains the need for disposable absorbent articles which contain body exudates while providing an optimum fit about the wearer and maintaining a pleasing appearance. Moreover, there is a need for a disposable absorbent article which has a garment-like appearance and which can be easily secured about and removed from the waist of a wearer.